"If this was your brother or sister or yourself and you were part of a process that was found not to be legal and you were punished for it then that's not fair," Thompson said.

"They've had to live out the last 16 months where there has been enormous pain, scrutiny and heartache.

"It's been hard to get through and I think now they can see the finish line."

What is a show cause notice?

The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA) has issued show cause notices to 34 Essendon players

In the show cause phase, players will be given 10 days to prove to ASADA they did not commit a doping infringement

During the 10-day period players may decide to launch a legal challenge against the notices

If ASADA's charges face a tribunal, the body will need to argue banned substances were administered

Any player found guilty faces a mandatory minimum two-year ban

If players demonstrate they were unwittingly given a prohibited substance, they may get a 50 per cent reduction on their penalty

ASADA insists it was within its rights to embark on the joint investigation, with chief Ben McDevitt saying on Saturday he has independent advice that the authority is on firm legal ground.

"The ASADA Act itself, its regulations, and the National Anti-Doping Scheme actually rely on the participation of sporting administration bodies on the issue of drugs in sport as a matter of policy and of law," Mr McDevitt said.

Essendon was disqualified from last year's finals series, fined $2 million and coach James Hird was suspended for 12 months after the club initially cooperated with the investigation.

Hird has also launched his own legal action against ASADA and while Thompson has spoken to the banned coach, he said that the recent legal developments were not discussed.

"I spoke to [Hird] last night for the first time since the season started," Thompson said.

"We didn't talk much. He's in France but he just asked how the players were basically.

"We didn't really talk about that (legal action). He basically asked about the players, how they were feeling and he asked more about the team and how they were going."

The show cause notices and subsequent legal action mark a significant escalation in hostilities between the parties, but Thompson said the club was up for the fight.

"The last 36 hours have been well-organised, well-planned and well-communicated by the club," he said.

"The players were a little bit vague and nervous and you could see that something was wrong (initially), but they've been given a lot of confidence by the club.

"Paul and the committee and the management of the football club have been in close contact and we've tried to look after them as well as we can. They're fine; they're ready for a game."